Rueda brings spark to Raiders' lineup

If Texas Tech right-hander AJ Ramos needs to see how well a player can come back from elbow surgery, he only needs to look at how teammate Willie Rueda is playing this season.

Rueda, Tech's junior second baseman, missed most of his sophomore year after undergoing reconstructive surgery to repair the torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, the same surgery Ramos underwent last week. Not only has Rueda returned to the form that earned him second-team All-Big 12 honors as a freshman in 2006, he's surpassed that to become one of the top players in the league this season.

Texas Tech second baseman Willie Rueda waits for the baseball as New Mexico State's Vince Rodden steals second during a game this year.

"I just followed the (rehabilitation) program, and I knew they were going to get me back out there," Rueda said. "I guess I've exceeded a lot of people's expectations, some of my own, too. I came back not knowing how strong my arm would be, and it's come back to what everyone thought it was."

But it's not just Rueda's arm that has allowed him to elevate his play. Heading into this weekend's Big 12 series at Oklahoma State (35-13, 14-7 in Big 12), Rueda leads the Red Raiders (21-26, 6-15) in hitting with a .342 average and in stolen bases, swiping 25 of 30 to rank No. 1 in the conference. His average also ranks among the top 20 overall in the league, and his .448 on-base percentage is eighth best in the Big 12.

He's put up those numbers while taking over the leadoff role for the Red Raiders, who tried several different players at the top of the order before Rueda asserted himself about a month ago. He went 1-for-2 and drew three walks in the series finale at Kansas on April 18 and has occupied that role ever since.

His 26 RBIs this season are more than the past two years combined and he's had eight of his 13 multi-hit games in that span. But he's had just as much an impact defensively, leading a Red Raider unit that is second in the Big 12 with a .971 fielding percentage.

"He's starting to look like a guy we had as a freshman who was second-team All-Big 12," Tech head coach Larry Hays said. "He made that for a reason and you forget all those things when a guy has an injury and is not able to go out and perform like he did in the past. It took a while for our new coaches to see what Willie could do and it sure has helped having him back."

But the it wasn't all good at the beginning of the season. Just eight months removed from surgery, Rueda wasn't 100 percent to start the year, and would occasionally have to sit out a game due to soreness in the surgically repaired elbow. He has played in all but two of Tech's games this year, but he missed five starts due to the soreness.

Rueda, who underwent the same surgery in high school, knew he would have to push himself harder the second time around to get back into the lineup by opening day.

"I only had eight months to come back if I wanted to play," Rueda said. "I had a full year the first time so we kind of bumped it up with the rehab."

It's his bat, however, that is making the most noise right now and has solidified the top of the Tech order. Since the end of the Kansas series, the team batting average is up 13 points, while Rueda has improved his average by 43 points.

"Right now I'm seeing the ball really well," Rueda said. "I'm just going to do my job wherever they put me, wherever they want me to hit. It's nice now hitting leadoff and seeing a lot of pitches, and letting the other guys in the lineup pick up those pitchers."

About the series: Oklahoma State leads the all-time series between the schools by a margin of 24-19. That includes six straight wins by the Cowboys with series sweeps the last two years. However, the Red Raiders have won three of the five Big 12 series held in Stillwater since the conference was formed in 1997. Tech is 7-8 at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium in Big 12 play.

Projected starting pitchers

TODAY

6:30 p.m.

Pitcher W-L ERA

Tech: Zach Stewart 2-2 6.06

OSU: Andrew Oliver 5-2 2.10

SATURDAY

2 p.m.

Pitcher W-L ERA

Tech: Chad Bettis 4-3 4.65

OSU: Tyler Lyons 8-2 3.42

SUNDAY

1 p.m.

Pitcher W-L ERA

Tech: Nate Karns 2-6 8.06

OSU: Matt Gardner 5-2 4.76

To comment on this story:

george.watson@lubbockonline.com 766-2166

jeff.walker@lubbockonline.com 766-8736